‘Metal Gear Survive’ pushes the series forward without creator Kojima

Konami today announced the upcoming launch of Metal Gear Survive, a four-player co-operative stealth game that pits surviving members of Militaires Sans Frontières against undead armies in an alternate universe.

Konami’s sudden shift in tone for the series arrives after last year’s high-profile departure of Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima, who has since joined up with Sony to produce the new franchise Death Stranding. Metal Gear Survive is the first post-Metal Gear Solid V series sequel designed without Kojima’s input.

A trailer for Metal Gear Survive released today begins with the ending cutscene from Metal Gear Solid V‘s prologue chapter, Ground Zeroes. Fresh off of a high-stakes extraction mission, starring character Snake and his private army Militaires Sans Frontières find themselves bombarded by firepower from an unknown force. The storyline in last year’s Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain picks up nine years after the attack as Snake awakens from a coma.

Today’s trailer quickly veers away from established series lore, however, when a wormhole opens up above the destroyed Militaires Sans Frontières base and begins abducting survivors. After being sucked through the portal, the surviving mercenaries find themselves face to face with a new threat: superpowered zombies who shrug off traditional firepower. The survivors band together with improvised weaponry as they search for a way home.

Series creator Hideo Kojima famously left publisher Konami in 2015 after a 30-year tenure, with Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain serving as his last credited work for the company. Kojima’s sudden departure also resulted in the cancellation of Silent Hills, a highly anticipated series reboot featuring input from film director Guillermo del Toro.

Fan reaction to today’s Metal Gear Survive reveal is overwhelmingly negative, recalling recent marketing missteps with Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare and Mighty No. 9. As of this writing, the game’s debut trailer has earned around 4,000 likes compared to almost 28,000 dislikes on YouTube.